Customers shop at the Apple Store on Fifth Avenue on product launch day, September 19, 2025. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
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Apple is set to release the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max on September 12. Unlike previous years, the iPhone 18 Pro models will be released separately from the entry-level iPhone 18 models. This is not a supply chain failure; instead, it is an explicit decision to maximize revenue. By offering higher-margin Pro models in the fall sales window and pushing the launch of the entry-level iPhone to spring 2027, Apple is increasing its average selling price during the high-volume holiday sales period.
iPhone 18 Pricing: $200 Impatience Tax
Apple’s delay to the spring launch of the entry-level iPhone 18 is forcing fall upgraders to pay an extra $200 for Pro models, punishing early adoption and driving up average selling prices..
The September launch date for the new iPhone family has been a fixture on Apple’s calendar for over a decade. Carrier contracts, like carrier marketing, are structured around an annual upgrade cycle, with 12-, 24-, or 36-month iPhone contracts firmly tied to Apple’s normal launch window. As contracts come to an end, buying your next iPhone is the easiest route to take. Since the iPhone 18 option is not available, consumers must choose between keeping the out-of-contract smartphone or paying $200 to upgrade to the iPhone 18 Pro.
By removing the equivalent of the iPhone 17’s $799 price from the original iPhone 18 portfolio, Apple is protecting its finances during this downturn while boosting customer sales in the background. At the same time, profitability will increase, which will have a positive impact on Apple’s income for the same period. It will be interesting to see how new iPhone sales change in the latest calendar quarter compared to last year, as we can evaluate how effective the split was.
iPhone 18 Pro storage is a keeper of Apple Intelligence
Limiting fall hardware releases to just the iPhone 18 Pro creates an immediate disparity in software, leaving advanced local AI processing for premium buyers..
Apple may be sweetening the deal with the September release of the iPhone 18 Pro for those who were expecting the iPhone 18. iOS 27 will launch alongside the iPhone 18 Pro and introduce the latest Apple Intelligence and Siri AI features. You can expect these to be heavily promoted and touted as key features of the new iPhone family.
Beta versions of iOS 27 demonstrate that 12 GB of memory is the minimum required for the full toolkit, especially the ability to run large language models (LLMs) locally and privately. Consumers who would normally get an iOS update on an older phone won’t have this option, except for a very limited set of older iPhones that come with 12GB of storage. This requirement will upset most existing iPhone owners. While the base iPhone 18 may or may not ship with the requisite 12GB of storage in spring 2027, those looking for a new AI-powered iPhone will only have the upcoming Pro models to choose from.
Eliminating mid-range iPhone 18 options for holiday tech shoppers
Apple’s split hardware sales schedule is disrupting holiday retail gifting, depriving buyers of mid-tier current-gen options..
Delaying the iPhone 18 release until 2027 will have a significant impact on holiday sales. Just as those looking to upgrade in September will be unsuccessful and forced to upgrade to a more expensive model, holiday shoppers will find themselves without a mid-range $799 option. The binary choice is to buy the iPhone 17, even if it’s over a year old, or pay about $200 more for the more powerful and profitable iPhone 18 Pro.
The lack of iPhone 18 on retail shelves will keep the price of the iPhone 17 high both in the Apple Store and in secondary markets. Deciding to buy the iPhone 17 at the end of 2026 could be a false economy. AI will require more memory than the iPhone 17 offers and will be quickly supplanted, likely by April, with the launch of the iPhone 18. When the iPhone 18 does arrive and Apple implements Siri AI, the resale value of the iPhone 17 will drop even faster.
Will consumers accept Apple’s iPhone 18 delay?
By delaying the entry-level iPhone 18 and iPhone 18 Air, Apple can turn the later release dates into margin leverage by focusing on the iPhone 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max and positioning them as standard iPhones. With the smartphone market in such chaos, Apple’s limited lineup may be the easiest to navigate.
This is a transition year for this strategy. Consumers looking to upgrade to the iPhone 18 may hold off on upgrading until 2027, but Apple is setting the stage to push as many people as possible to the iPhone 18 Pro, the new standard.